Oil burner



MY 23, 1939- R. E. wlLcQx Er AL 2,159,414

oIL BURNER Filed sept. zo, 193e s' sheets-sheet 1 .-M'ay 23, 1939. R. E.w|l cox Er A1.

OIL BURNER Filed Spt.` 30, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 z/c-:f DFS fog/uva 15V/Loox.

AMay 23, 1939.

R. E. wlLcox E1- A1.

on. BURNER 4 Filed sept. so, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 /Vferm/ PV/1. cox.4 @M

Patented May 23, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Palatine, Ill., assignors, by

direct and mesne assignments, to Wilcox Heat Machine Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application september so, 193e, serial No. 103,246

16 Claims.

l 'Ihe present invention relates in general to an oil burner construction and is particularly concerned amongst other things with a novel construction for automatically controlling the air' inlet'for the main supply of air, when the burner is started and stopped.

In the usual arrangement of an oil burner and v furnace, air under pressure is conducted from a fan or blower to the furnace ilre box where it is mixed with oil to form a combustible mixture.

In such arrangement, it has been found that, when the burner shuts down and the fan or blower is stopped, the natural draft of the furnace continues to draw in large quantities of l5 cold air through the fan or blower with the result that this air is heated in the 'furnace and carried up the chimney. It will, therefore, be apparent that a large amount of heat is thus wasted and the Igeneral eiilciency of the heating 20 system is materially decreased. Moreover, the burner nozzle is ordinarily so positioned in the fire box that it is subjected to heat from the wall of the rebox, after the burner is shut down. This heating of the nozzle causes it to 2'5 carbonize and thereby decrease its efficiency.

With the above diiliculties of the present arrangements in mind, this invention contemplates as' a' primary object the Aprovision of means for automatically, closing the main fan or blower in- 30 let when the burner operation ceases, but which will again open immediately when the burner is started up. Also, when the main supply of air is shut off, it is proposed to take advantage of the natural draft of the furnace to provide ,an

35 auxiliary supply of air for .keeping the oil discharge nozzle cool and prevent carbonization thereof.

A furtherl object is to provide an improved air inlet valve control and actuating mechanism in 40 an oil burner.

A further object is to provide `a compact arrangement in an oil burner wherein all the moving parts are in axial alignment and driven by a common power means.

45 A further object of the invention is to utilize the motive power means -ofan oil burner in a novel manner for actuating the air inlet control valve.

Still another object of the herein described in- 50 vention is to provide an improved assembly and mounting arrangement for the air andoil discharge nozzles, whereby' carbonlzation of the nozzles will be prevented, irrespective of whether the burner is operating or shut down.

55 Still another object is to provide in an oil burner an arrangement of parts such that all the moving parts may be encased in a common housing, and which may be sealed against unauthorized tampering, but at the same time be readily accessible when necessary. 5

It is also an object to provide improved means for supporting .the ignition electrodes.

It is likewise an object of the invention to provide a novel arrangement, wherein the forces set up in the stator of the electric driving motor 10 are utilized for operating auxiliary equipment such as valves, electric switches, and the like.

In accordance with the general features of the V present invention, it is proposed to` provide a tubular partitioned casing, this partition being v integrally formed with a base support for a fan or blower, anoil pump and driving motor having one end of its drive shaft connected to the blower impeller and its other end connected to the pump. The stator of this motor is mounted in bearings for limited rotative movement from a normal position when starting, this action being well known and understood by those skilled in the art.

One end of the casing is slightly tapered to form a main air nozzle blast tube, and adjacent this end the casing wall is provided with air inlet openings. A frame member is mounted for rotative movement in such a manner as to open and close the inlet openings, this member also being shaped to guide the main inlet air .from the inlet openings to the blower fan or impeller. The frame member is rotated by means of a connection with the motor stator, and is normally in inlet closing position, but as soon as the motor is started to drive the oil pump and fan, the stator is kicked through its limlteddistance of movement to open the inlet so that the fan may force air through the main air nozzle. A cam adjustment is provided by means of which the movement of the motor stator may be varied to change the amount of the inlet opening. When the motor is stopped, the frame member closes the main inlet openings, whereby the natural draft of the furnace, with which the burner is used, cannot continue to draw in large quantities of air through the main air nozzle.

In the path of the main air supply from the fan, a bracket is provided having a plurality of fins, which extend longitudinally of the air nozzle, and function to break up the swirling motion of the air 'from the fan and direct it longitudinally through the main air nozzle.

Anv oil discharge nozzle extends axially of th main air nozzle, this oil nozzle being supported from the aforementioned bracket. In order to 55 cool the air nozzle and prevent carbonization thereof, there is also supported on this' bracket air compartment, to be sealed against unauthora tubular member surrounding the oil nozzleso as to form an auxiliary air nozzle. The inlet to this auxiliary nozzle is through a passageway in the nozzle supporting bracket, this passageway being in communication through an opening in the casingwall with the atmosphere.

.With the foregoing arrangement, when the burner is shut down and the main air supply through the main airl nozzle discontinued, the natural draft of the furnace may still continue to suck in a small quantity of air through the auxiliary air nozzle.- The amount of heat carried up the chimney by this air is practically negligible, but this air is quite suflicient to keep the oil nozzle cool and' prevent its becoming carbonized as a result of the heat in the nre box.

An additional feature resides in the general arrangement of parts so as to enable the motor and oil pump, which are mounted in a separate compartment of the casing from the blower or ized access. Thesealingfeature is obtained by providing the outer or pump end of the. casing with a bell shaped end cover having a central aperture adapted to receive therethrough a threaded stud on the pump housing. A thumb nut threaded on the stud holds lthe cover in place, and a sealing wire of the'usual construction passing through a transverse hole in the stu'd prevents removal of the thumb nut 'without breaking the seal.

Other objects and features of the invention will more fully appear from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings which illustrate a single embodiment thereof, and in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the oil burner of the herein described invention, showing it connected to 'the nre box wall of a furnace; certain of theburner parts being illustrated in elevation;

Figure 2 isl an enlarged 'transverse sectional view of the burner showing details of the valve member for controlling the admission of the of the cam arrangement for adjusting the movement of the driving motor statorl to` vary the amount of inlet air admittedtaken substantially on line IV--IVxef Figure 2; and

Figure is a detailed fragmentary view, showing a mercury type switch mounted on the motor stator, whereby the stator movement may be utilized for controlling an electric circuit.

In the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, there is shown in Figure 1 an oil burner containing the novel features to be herein described, this burner being connected to a furnace, the fire box wall of which is generally indicated at A.

The operative in strumentalities of the present 5 invention are enclosed in a casing or housing which is composed of main tubular portionv I0.

'I'he tubular portion I0 is closed at one end by means of bell-shaped end cover member II having' a. rim adapted to fit into a ciroumferentially extending end groove l2 formed on the associated end of member I0. The manner of securing the end cover in assembled position will be described later in detail.

At the opposite end of member l0, there is vprovided a main air nozzle I3 of :truste-conical shape. The large end of this nozzle is of such circumference as to slidably 'lit over the associated end of member I0, being held in assembled position by means vof screws I4 and a leg member I5,

which provides a single point support for this ing the space around th'e nozzle I3 by means of furnace cement or other suitable material.

Mounted substantially at the center of the housing is a frame structure composed of a longitudinally extending base portion I8 having a pedestal support I9 integrally formed therewith at its right end as viewed in Figure 1 for supporting an oil pump 20 with its drive shaft 2l extending axially of the tubular member I0.

This supporting frame is formed at its other end to dene a dished partition wall 22 for separating the burner housing into separate compartments 23 and 24. In addition, the partition wall 22 is provided at its center with antifriction bearing members which cooperate with similar anti-friction bearing members mounted on an intermediate pedestal 25 for supporting the driving motor 26.

The driving motor 26 has its stator secured to a sleeve member 21 Whichprojects from the respective ends of the motor and is rotatably mounted on the moto;` driving shaft 28 which extends therethrough. The outermost end of the driving shaft of the motor is connected to the drive shaft of the pump 20 by means of a flexible coupling 29.

The other end of the sleeve 21 and shaft 2B of the motor project through the partition wall 22.

Mounted on the extreme end of this end of the shaft is a. fan 30 having a plurality of blades. This fan is arranged to draw in air from the exterior of tubular member I0 through a plurality of circumferentally aligned inlet openings 3l, as shown in Figure 2, in the member I0. Overlying these openings is a shield member 32 in the form of a collar having one edge margin contracted as shown at. 33 to tightly engage thev outer surface'of member Il). This collar may be secured to member I 0 in any suitable mannen.,

and welding has been found satisfactory for this purpose. The opposite edge of this collar, it will be observed, is spaced from the surface of member i0 in order to provide a passage for the inlet air.

The flow 0f air through the inlet openings 3| is controlled by means of a valve and guiding member 34. The Valve and guiding lmember 34 is of cage-like construction and embodies a truncate conical wallv 35 having a central disk portion 36 which is centrally-apertured as shown at 31 for receiving the end of sleeve 21 therethrough. This end of the sleeve is provided with a circumferentially extending abutment shoulder 33 75 to which the disk' portion is secured as by screws At the periphery of the wall 35, there are a plurality of circumferentially spaced rib members 39 which are connected to the periphery of a defiector ring 49. The outer surfaces of the ribs 39 are machined so as to closely fit the interior surface ofmember I9 and the ribs are of such size as to respectivelylclose the inlet openings 3| .Y ,However, when the valve and guide member 34 is rotated, the inlet openings are uncovered for the passage of inlet air in amounts depending upon the amount of rotation of the guiding and valve member. With this arrangement, the inlet air is controlled and vguided so as .to initially move in a radial direction and i thereafter in an axial direction in the tubular member I0; ',Ihe innermost edge of the member 40 is disposed adjacent the leading edges of fan 3U.

On the side of the fan towards the furnace, there is adjacently disposed a bracket member 4i having a dished central portion 42. the apex of which faces the fan 30 to form a deflector for directing the air stream outwardly at an angle towards the member l0. The member 4i has integrally formed therewith a hollow pedestal portion 43 which is connected at its lowermost end to the member I9 as by the leg l5 and screws as shown at 44.

The pedestal portion 43 defines a cored passageway 45 having its lowermost end in registration with an inlet opening 46 in the wall of tubular member I0. The upper end of the pedestal portion defines a central socket 41, which cornmunicates with the upper end of the cored passageway 45,' and is disposed with its axis horizontal.

The periphery of the dished plate portion 42 is provided with a plurality of circumferentially spaced iins 48l which act to break up the swirling of the air discharged from the fan and cause the air to be directed in an axial direction from the associated end of member I0.

An oil nozzle 49 has an elongate shank portion which extends into the socket 41 and is supported by means of a contracted end 50 which is threadedly engaged by a nut 5|, the nut 5l cooperating with a shoulder 52 to-secure the noz` zle in a horizontal position.

spray head, generally indicated at 53, for atomizing the oil which is brought in through a passageway 54. 'The entrance to passageway 54 is connected by means of a suitable connector 55 to an oil pipe 55.

In order to protect the oil discharge nozzle and cool the'same to prevent carbonization thereof, a sleeve 51 is supported in spaced relation around the nozzle with one end disposed in the socket 41. 'The' opposite end of the sleeve 51 is tapered, as shown at 58, to form an auxiliary air discharge nozzle which is arranged to suckin auxiliary air through opening 46, cored 4passageway 45, and. axially along the nozzle shank 49. This air is carried past the nozzle head andis discharged into the furnace adjacent the innermost end of the main air nozzle i3. It will be observedv that the movement of air through the main discharge nozzle during the burner operation will causea suction on the auxiliary air when the burner is not operating, the natural The ignition mechanism for igniting-the coml bustible mixture when the burner is started comprises a pair of elongate electrodes 59 and 60, which extend through the space between the main air nozzle I3 and auxiliary air nozzle 58 so that their outer ends are disposed adjacent the discharge of atomized oil from the oil nozzle head 53.

These electrodes are removably anchored in the dish-shaped portion 42 in any suitable manner. For this purpose, it has been found satisfactory to provide a shell of insulating material, such as porcelain, as shown at 6l, on the end of each electrode and clampingly secure the porcelain shells in suitable apertures by-means of a common clamping member 62 having end apertures to 'fit overl the associated ends of the porcelain shells. This clamping member is secured in operative position by means of a single screw 63.

Electrical connections to the electrodes are carried in small conduits 54 and 65, which are connected at one end to the tubular member i9 and at the other end to a container 66 for housing the spark coil or transformer. The container 96 is entirely enclosed and is supported on a base adaptor 61 on the upper side of member E9. Be-

low this container, there is provided an opening 68 in rthe housing portion l0 to,facilitate the bringing in of electrical connections to the motor.

'Ihe oil supply pipe 56 is connected by an appropriate fitting to a discharge outlet 69 passing through the member il and suitably connected to the pump 20. The oil is supplied to the pump through a pipe 10 which is connected to the pump in a similar manner.

As heretofore mentioned, the stator of the motor is mounted for limited rotative movement, and this movement during the starting of the motor is utilized to revolve the valve and guiding member 34 so as Ito cause it to open the inlet openings 3l when the burner is operating. For this purpose, the motor is provided with a cam bracket 1| lwhich is secured to the motor stator as by screws 12. This bracket embodies a curved arm portion 13 face 14.

The cam bracket is of suicient weight to normally rotate the motor stator in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 2, under the action of gravity when the motor is de-energized. This movement of the,stator tends to bring the end of the arm 13 against a screw 15 which is mounted in the member i8 and provided with a locking nut 16 so that the screw may be secured in adjusted position. It will be apparent that move ment of the screw 15 in one direction or the other will tend to increase or decrease the amount of movement that the arm 13 may make when the motor stator is rotated in a clockwise direction.

Movement of the stator in the opposite direction, when the motor is started, is controlled by means of a rod 11, which is mounted for longifudinaily sliding movement on member" I 8. and

is so disposed that its end 18 will be in the line of travel of cam surface 14. The opposite end of rod 11 isthreaded as shown at 19 where it passes lthrough the member I9. This end is ,also provided with a lock nut 8U so that the rod may be se'cured in adjusted position. It will be apparent that by movement of the rod towards and away from the cam surface 14, the end 18 will permit a vless or greater movement of the motor stator when the motor is started. The arwhich is provided with. a camA rangement just described provides novel means for closing the inlet openings 3l when the burner is shut down 'and opening these openings to admit inlet air, the amount of air admitted depending upon the adjustment of rod 11 relative to the cam surface 14, when the burner is started up and the motor is running. 1-

This movement of the motor stator is also utilized for the control of auxiliary electrical cir-` cuits. For this purpose, a suitable switch such as a mercury type switch as shown at 8l may be mounted on the stator by means of suitable clips 82. Obviously, this switch may be of the normally closed or normally open type, depending upon the character of control desired. For example, We may provide an auxiliary circuit, as shown at Sla in Figure 5, which may be connected to 'suitable auxiliary equipment, such as an electrically actuated valve 82a, disposed in the oil supply pipe 56 for the nozzle. It will, therefore, be evident that with this. arrangement, it is possible to control the closing or opening of an auxiliary electric circuit in response to the starting and stopping of the driving motor of they ,against removal from the threaded stud 83and by providing a transverse opening through the outer end of this stud, a sealing wire 86 may be insertedtherethrough and the ends oi' this wire connected by a metal seal, as shown at 81. The cover il is, therefore, secured against removal to give access to the motor and pump compartment, unless the seal is broken. On the other hand, the cover H may be removed by an authorized person, whereby the pump and motor are rendere'dreadily accessible for repair or replacement or other necessary purpose.

Fom the foregoing description, it will be apparent that the present invention provides in an oil burner improved means for automatically closingv the main air inlet when the burner operation ceases, and opening the main air inlet a predetermined amount when4 the burner is started up; which provides a novel arrangement in which the moving parts of the burner are in axial alignment and driven by a common power means; in

which a driving motor is utilized, this motor havingv its stator mounted for limited rotative movement, to control auxiliary equipment such as valves, electric switches, and the like; which embodies novel means for cooling the oil discharge nozzle andpreventing carbonization during the operation andnon-operation of the oil burner; and in which novel means are provided for sealing the motor and pump compartment against unauthorized access, but rendering the pump and motor readily accessible, when desired.

The invention has been described herein more or less previsely as to details, yet it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited thereby, as changes may be made in the arrangement and proportion of parts, and equivalents may-be substituted, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

We claim as our invention:

1. An oil burner construction comprising an oil discharge nozzle, means for supplying oil to said nozzle under pressure, an air conducting casing around said nozzle having a discharge end 2. An oil burner construction comprising an oil discharge nozzle, means including a motor for supplying oil to said nozzle under pressure, an air conducting casing around said nozzle having a discharge end adjacent the discharge end of said nozzle and an air inlet opening, means operated by said motor for blowing air through said casing past said nozzle, and means for automatically controlling the admission of inlet air through said inlet opening in response to the actuationv of said motor.

3. An oil burner construction comprising an oil dischargevnozzle, means for supplying oil to said nozzle under pressure, an air conducting casing ar'ound said nozzle having a discharge end adjacent the discharge end of said, nozzle and an air inlet opening, power actuated mechanism for blowing air through said casing past said nozzle, and means operable in response to the starting and stopping of lsaid mechanism to open and close said inlet, said operation being independent of the air iloW.

4. An oil burner comprising a tubular casing having an air outlet and having an air inlet opening, an oil discharge nozzle at the air .outlet of said casing, a fan in said casing, a rotatably mounted frame structure in said casing for controlling and guiding the inlet air to said fan, and an electric motor having its stator mounted for limited rotative movement; the sha-ft of said motor being connected to said fan, and its stato connected to said frame structure.

5.' An oil burner comprising a housing having an outlet opening and an inlet opening, an oil i discharge nozzle at the air outlet opening of said housing, a fan in said housing, valve means for controlling the ow of air through the inlet opening, a motor having its stator mounted. for limited rotative movement, the driving shaft of the motor being connected to the fan and the stator being` connected to said valve means, and means for varying the amount of said limited movement of the stator.

7. An oil burner comprising a housing having an outlet opening and an inlet opening, an oil discharge nozzle at the air outlet opening` of said housing, a fan-,in said housing, valve means for controlling the ilow of air through the inlet opening, a motor having its stator mounted for limited rotative movement, the driving shaft of the motor being connected to the fan and the stator being connectedl to said valve means, and cam means for adjusting the amount of said limited movement.

8. An oil burner comprising` a fuel nozzle, a pair of tubular members disposed about a-common axis and respectively defining eways for a main supply and an auxiliary supply of air to said nozzle, individual air inlets to' said members, means for forcing air through the outermost of said members and past the outlet end of the innermost of said members, whereby auxiliary air is sucked through the innermost member past said nozzle, motor means for driving said fan, and means for automatically closing the main inlet when the fan is stopped and opening the main inlet when the fan is running. I

9. An oil burner comprising means defining a pair of passageways disposed-about a common axis for respectively conducting a, main supply of air and an auxiliary supply of air, said passageways having adjacently disposed outletsand individual inlets, an oil discharge nozzle supported in the passageway for auxiliary ai'r adjacent its outlet, power driven means for forcing air through the main passageway, and means for automatically opening and closing the inlet to the main air passageway respectively in response to the operation and non-operation of said power driven means.

10. In an oil burner, a main air nozzle, an auxiliary air nozzle disposed in the main nozzle with its wall spaced therefrom, said -nozzles having their discharge ends adjacently disposed, a supporting bracket for the auxiliary nozzle having a passageway for connecting the auxiliary nozzle with atmosphere, ns on said bracket for guiding the movement of air in the main air nozzle, and an oil discharge nozzle supported by said bracket, said oil discharge nozzle being disposed in the auxiliary air nozzle adjacent its discharge end. y

11. In an oil burner, a main air nozzle, an auxiliary air nozzle disposed in the main nozzle with its wall spaced therefrom, said nozzles having their discharge ends adjacently disposed, a supporting bracket for the auxiliary nozzle having a passageway for connecting the auxiliary nozzle with atmosphere, fins on said bracket for guiding the movement of air in the main air nozzle and an oil discharge nozzle supported by said bracket, said oil discharge nozzle being disposed in the auxiliary air nozzle adjacent its discharge end, and a pair of igniting electrodes insulatingly supported on said bracket, said electrodes extending through the space between said air nozzles and having their ends disposed adjacent the outlet ends of the air nozzles.

l 12. Ina fuel burner, means for positively impellingI combustion supporting air to the burner including an electric motor connected directly to said means, and means including a. motor part operative by the reverse torque of said motor upon' the starting of the motor for effecting a control of the iiow of said'air, and means connected to said motor part to return said second means automatically to its original position to cut off said air upon stopping of the motor.

13. An oil burner construction comprising a tubular casing, an oil atomizing nozzle adjacent one end thereof, impeller means for supplying air to the nozzle, and power means, said nozzle, impeller means and power means being positioned withinr said casing, said power means having a driving shaft upon which the impeller is mounted, and a partition disposed between the power means and impeller defining a bearing for said shaft and longitudinally separating the casing into compartments, one of said compartments containing the power means and the other the impeller and nozzle.

14. An oil burner comprising a fuel nozzle, means for conducting a supply' of air to said nozzle, said means having an inlet opening, an air rimpeller' operatively associated with said means,

valve means for controlling the air flow. through said iirst means, an auxiliary control circuit, switch means for controlling said circuit, a motor having a rotor connected to said impeller and a stator supported for limited rotational, movement only upon starting and stopping of the motor, and means connecting said valve means and switch means to said stator, whereby their operation may be simultaneously accomplished as a function of the starting and stopping o'f said motor.

15, In an oil burner including anair impelling fan, a fuel pump and power means for driving the fan and pump; a housing construction comprising a tubular casing having a contracted delivery end portion adapted to be sealed into the ilre-box of a. furnace, a fuel delivery nozzle in said end portion and connected to said pump, a removable bell-shaped cover closing the other end of said casing adapted to be sealed against unauthorized removal, and a partition disposed between the ends of said casing longitudinally separating it into two compartments, the compartment adjacent the contracted end of the casing having the fan disposed therein and the other compartment having the pump and power means disposed therein, the first of said compartments being provided with an air inlet for supplying .1

air to said fan.

16. In a fuel burner, a burner fluid control member adapted to be opened and closed and "throughwhich iiuid to be used in the burner combustion is adapted to ow, means for electrically setting up oppositely acting torsional forces in the vicinity of the burner, means employing the forces acting in one direction to effect an opening of said member, and means employing the forces acting in the other direction for eiecting 2 a positive impelling movement of said uid through said member.

ROLAND E. WILCOX. lMERTON WILCOX. 

